Tips

7 Outside-the-Box Employee Retention Strategies

Greta Cline

Partner, CFO/COO

October 10, 2022

Attracting and retaining top talent is tough. It takes real strategy, and in our post-pandemic world, HR and leadership teams must be highly creative with a laser focus on the overall employee experience. Are you ready to start attracting and retaining the best of the best, and enjoying an engaged workplace? There has never been a better time to get creative to retain top-quality talent using these 7 outside-the-box employee retention strategies.

Attract & retain the best of the best!

Steal our outside-the-box ideas.

There has never been a better time to try out these creative staffing strategies to help you land and keep top-notch talent.

1. Revamp your onboarding and orientation

Making your orientation and training process more engaging and exciting is a great first impression for new hires. Create an onboarding plan that makes your employees feel welcome and provides plenty of information about the company’s culture and core business processes. Connect consistently and often. Company-wide communication plans such as newsletters, boards, apps, etc. are great ways to reach all employees.

2. Offer a competitive salary

We all know that budgets are tight right now. Even if you can’t increase salaries at this time, consider other forms of compensation such as improving health care benefits or the employer-paid percentage, PTO, retirement plan matches and bonuses. The top reason to leave a job in a recent “Future of Benefits Study” from The Hartford was, unsurprisingly, for higher wages, the next highest reason was for a better workplace culture.

3. Prioritize employee well-being

Speaking of workplace culture, make sure that your employees have a healthy work-life balance with corporate wellness programs, stress management, financial planning services, gym or fitness class reimbursement, paid mental health days and/or sabbaticals. Always remember that your employees are real people with real lives outside of work, just like you.

4. Promote a recognition-rich culture

Recognize employees early and often – both performance and effort. According to OC Tanner research via NBC News, 79% of people say that lack of appreciation was a major factor in their choice to resign. Even more surprising, roughly 60% say that employee recognition can be even more motivating than money. Celebrate both wins and losses together and tell employee stories in creative ways.

5. All about the perks

Perks at your office can include things like well-stocked staff kitchens, a casual dress code, parental or caregiver paid leave, on-site daycare, stipends for off-site child or fur companion daycare, pop-up events, and cell phone or commuter parking stipends.

6. Flexibility is where it’s at

As you consider office perks, keep in mind that reports show a majority of employees would be willing to give up at least one traditional job perk in exchange for choosing their own workspace. Today’s workers want increased work flexibility, including remote and hybrid positions. If you can’t go fully remote for a position, offer a mix of on-site work each week and flexible schedule options. Above all, be compassionate and open-minded.

7. Empower employees

In order to help your employees to achieve their development goals, employers can provide continuous learning opportunities, a development stipend, tuition reimbursement, mentorship programs, and coaching resources.

According to a recent Gallup poll, just 32% percent of employees in the U.S. are genuinely engaged in their jobs. But with assistance from a staffing firm like That’s Good HR and our employee retention strategies, your candidates, new hires and seasoned employees can feel more engaged than ever. Our forward-thinking, locally focused firm specializes in making strong temp, temp-to-hire, and direct hire placements in areas like HR, administrative, customer service and accounting.

Not sure where to start? Poll your current employees! Contact our employer partnerships team today and we can help you define polling questions to assess the engagement of your staff as well as develop strategies to help retain them!

TGHR News

No Secret Recipe to Leadership

Mary Springer

Partner

July 8, 2019

When you bake a cake, you follow a specified recipe to create a perfect desert. Different ingredients can be combined to create various flavors – all delicious in their own way. I believe there is no secret recipe for being a great leader. Different combinations create different types of leaders – one just as good as the next – like cake. The secret lies in discovering what your leadership strengths are.

To discover my team’s strengths, we use the #1 international bestselling book StrengthsFinder 2.0. Gallup first introduced this simple tool in 2001. It was the result of Gallup’s landmark 30-year research project that ignited a global conversation on the topic of strengths. Almost 20 years later, millions of people have used this approach to discover their top five strengths, which in turn helps them to become a better leader.

Knowing our team’s strengths, helps us understand everyone better and strengthens our company as a whole. Everyone of our team members is a leader in some capacity and as the company owner, it’s my job to develop and nurture my staff so they can reach their leadership potential.

Each TGHR employee has their own “recipe” of strengths. Understanding where we overlap and differ has provided a common language we use to communicate with each other every day. Although each recipe is different, there are some leadership characteristics that are shared by our staff – responsibility, communication, achiever and woo.

According to the StrengthsFinder, leaders strong in the responsibility theme are committed to values such as honesty and loyalty and take ownership of what they say they will do. These are key values to our company and the pillar of why I started TGHR – to do staffing better.

People strong in the communication theme are good conversationalists and presenters. They can quickly and easily put their thoughts into words. This is not unexpected since our business consists of talking to our candidates and clients every day! We interview candidates all day long and need to be able to be superior conversationalists to discover their strengths and explain those strengths effectively to our clients.

Achievers have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They derive satisfaction from being productive. Since one of our company mottos is “work hard, play hard”, it comes as no surprise that this shows up in our team’s strengths!

Woo is another strength that pairs perfectly with being in the staffing industry. People strong in woo love meeting new people and are fulfilled by making connections with people – which is perfect for staffing! Our team loves matching the right candidate to the right client job.

I am fortunate to lead a team that takes pride in their strengths and thrives on discovering the strengths of others. If you do not know where you excel as a leader, I highly recommend you discovering your strengths! Let me know how I (or my team) can help.

About TGHR

National Volunteer Month: TGHR Cares

April 24, 2019

April is National Volunteer Month and our staff celebrates by helping not just this month, but all year long.

Multiple TGHR team members volunteer through ministries at their place of worship. You’ll find Payroll and Operations Manager Kirstia Cropper coaching CYO volleyball and serving on the Parish Council for St. Mark’s Church and helping at St. Vincent De Paul. Senior Accountant Meaghan Smith gets her whole family involved by packing a “care bag” each month and bringing it to Eastern Star Church and adopting a family at the holidays. Marketing Director Susie McKenna and CFO Greta Cline have taught Sunday School at St. Alphonsus and Staffing Specialist Ashley Paramore spends her time with the children’s ministry at Brookside Community Church. Ashley has also volunteered through Northview, most recently at the Hope Center. You’ll find Account Executive Amber Graves welcoming you to Traders Point Church. Amber also volunteers at Wheeler Mission and has been known to hand out bags with hotel toiletries to the homeless.

Other TGHR staff members volunteer right where they live. Division Manager of Temporary Services Kate Stephens is a proud Broad Ripple Village Association Board Member. She champions the Beautification Committee and organizes groups to keep the Village clean and vibrant! You also can find her behind-the-scenes at most Board Ripple fairs and festivals.

Greta Cline, CFO and Co-owner, is currently serving as vice president and treasurer of the Boone County Dairy Promoter Board. Greta also has taught Zionsville history through the Sullivan Munce Cultural Center and organizes a Toys for Tots toy drive gala annually. Marketing Director Susie McKenna also hails from Boone County and works as a Board Member for the Boys & Girls Club of Boone County and elevates her soccer mom status as a Board Member for the Zionsville Youth Soccer Association.

Other staff members find joy in giving back to organizations where they have a personal connection. Division Manager of Temporary Services Lindsey Curtis used to work at Make-A-Wish Foundation, and she’s stayed involved with the organization through volunteering. Staffing Specialist Madison Schacht benefited from being a part of Delta Zeta while she was in college and now heads back to her alma mater, Ball State, to serve as Alumni Relations and Academics Advisor for Delta Zeta at Ball State.

We’d love to hear what organizations you are involved with and where you volunteer to make Indy a better place!

Staffing

Are You Taking a Spring Break?

Mary Springer

Partner

March 27, 2019

Many employees across the U.S. are getting ready for Spring Break. Did you know that this time off from work may actually extend your tenure at your job? A recent IBJ infographic noted for every week that employees took off, it extended their stay at their company by eight months. We at TGHR know how important tenure is since our entire client services staff has been with the company for 10 years or more! In addition, as a result of every 10 vacation hours an employee took, their performance review was 8 percent higher.

Vacation is good for the soul as reported by the American Psychological Association in their annual Work and Well-Being Study. Sixty-eight percent of workers claimed they were more positive after returning from taking vacation time and 66 percent claimed to have more energy. This translated to 57 percent of employees feeling more motivated and 58 percent of workers saying they were more productive.

But does everyone use all their vacation time? In 2018 there were 212 million unused vacation days and only 41 percent of US workers said they felt encouraged by their companies to take their vacation. But companies who encouraged their employees to go on a vacation like Spring Break had employees that felt more valued and who were satisfied with their job. One of the most important statistics? The employees who worked at places who encouraged taking vacation said they were likely to recommend their employer as a good place to work, 81 percent versus 39 percent.

But having workers out on vacation can cause added stress on a company, but there’s no need to fret. That’s Good HR places people on temporary assignments for as short as one day. If you have someone headed out on Spring Break or if you are prepping for a summer vacation give us a call. We are ready to help so vacation can be stress-free for you and your employees!

Seasonal

TGHR Souper Bowl

February 1, 2019

With crazy cold temperatures in the Midwest and the big game approaching this weekend, team TGHR decided to heat up the office with a little friendly competition. Introducing the inaugural TGHR Souper Bowl! Staff members made soups and desserts to share during an office lunch. Our big winner was Pizza Soup, but the other entries definitely made the playoffs in our book. Try your hand at these soups and let us know which one you think is a touchdown.

Crowd-Pleasing Pizza Soup

This is crowd favorite especially with kids. What really sends this soup over the goal line is topping it with mozzarella cheese and garlic butter croutons.

1 pound ground sausage

½ cup onion, diced

4 cups water

2 jars of pizza sauce (16 oz. each)

1 package pepperoni cut into quarters – pro tip: look for the mini pepperonis to use there fore no cutting needed

2 tomatoes diced

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp Italian seasoning

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp dried rosemary

¼ tsp dried basil

Brown and drain sausage and onion. Put in crock pot with other ingredients and cook on low for 3-4 hours. Great soup to make the night before the big game as this soup tastes best the next day.

Sausage Supreme

We’ll find out which team reigns supreme this weekend, but this soup was a winner! This one comes with the option of making it in a stockpot or a crock pot.

1 pound Italian sausage

1 onion, diced (red onion was used)

1 can Northern White Beans (do not drain)

1 can chicken broth

1 can of Rotel

1 Tbsp oregano

Salt and Pepper to taste

Brown sausage with onion. If in stockpot add other ingredients and simmer for a minimum of 20 minutes. In crockpot, heat for 3 hours.

Touchdown Tortellini Tomato

This soup was top draft pick and comes together so quick, it will be ready by halftime.

1 can petite tomatoes (28 oz)

1 can chicken broth (28 oz)

1 can tomato soup (21.5 oz)

1 package chive and onion cream cheese spread (16 oz)

1 package cheese tortellini (found in refrigerated section)

1 pound Italian sausage (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a crock pot and simmer for 1 hour.

Huddle-up Vegetable & Steak Soup

This low-carb soup will warm you up so fast, you will feel like you are in the middle of the huddle.

1 pound beef stew cubes

2 cans of diced tomatoes with garlic and oregano

3 cans of beef broth

1 package of each: corn, green beans, edamame, carrots (frozen)

Radishes, quartered

Place all ingredients in the crockpot on low for 8 hours, add water if needed.

Legendary Red Beans and Rice

This take on a classic is sure to be a winner!

1 pound uncooked (dry) red kidney beans

12 ounces Andouille sausage, sliced

5 garlic cloves, minced

3 celery stalks, diced

1 medium white onion, peeled and diced

1 bell pepper, cored and diced

2 tsp Creole seasoning

1 tsp hot sauce, or more/less to taste

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 bay leaves

7 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the kidney beans thoroughly. Add the kidney beans, sausage, garlic, celery, onion, bell pepper, Creole seasoning, hot sauce, dried thyme, bay leaves and chicken stock to the crockpot and stir. Cook on high for 6-8 hours, or until the kidney beans are soft and cooked through. Season with salt and pepper. Before serving, remove the Bay leaves. Serve immediately over rice, garnished with green onions. Recipe here.

Spicy Chicken Ramen with a Kick

There’s no pressure to make the extra point when you make this soup with a kick!

4 cups low sodium chicken broth

1 can coconut milk (14 oz)

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

2 Tbsp fish sauce

2 Tbsp honey

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

2 Tbsp red chili sauce (or sriracha)

1/4 cup Thai red curry paste

3/4 pounds rotisserie chicken

8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced

2 red peppers, chopped

1 zucchini

1 inch fresh ginger, grated

1 clove garlic, minced or grated

2-4 squares ramen noodles

1 line, juiced

3 cups fresh baby spinach

1/3 cup fresh basil or cilantro, roughly chopped

In a large soup pot, combine the broth, coconut milk, soy sauce, fish sauce, honey, peanut butter, and chili sauce. Add the chicken, cremini mushrooms, red peppers, zucchini, ginger, and garlic. Simmer on the stove over medium heat for 15 minutes. Bring the soup to a boil over high heat. Stir in the noodles, lime juice, spinach, and cilantro. Let the noodles soften. Top the soup with peanuts, cilantro and scallions. Recipe here.

Seasonal

Our Intent

January 10, 2019

Annually as the new year approaches, many folks take time set their intentions for the next year. Making a new year’s resolution is common place on January 1, but 80 percent of resolutions fail by February. One thing you can do to help your resolution – or resolutions – stick is to share them with others who can help keep you accountable.

To prepare for the new year, the TGHR team engaged in a fun, crafty activity one day during a staff lunch. Using a kit bought online, each TGHR staff member came up with a word that sums up what they want out of the new year. We took the words and hammered them on to bracelets that can be worn as a reminder of our intention. It was great to share these words and the meaning behind them with the co-workers we see daily. We also documented our intentions on our office white board (well in our case our board is, of course, orange – our signature color), so we can help keep each other accountable.

What’s your word for 2019? Here are ours:
Mary – Breathe & Patience
Tiffany – Let Go
Amber – Grace & Serve
Lindsey – Cici & Sully
Kate – Be Present
Lana – Trust
Ashley – Thrive
Madison – Be Bold
Staci – Breathe
Greta – Patience
Kirstia – Strength
Susie – Grace
Meaghan – Faith over Fear
Emma – Rooted

We’re excited to get the new year underway. If getting a new job is one of your 2019 resolutions, give us a call – we’re ready to help you achieve that goal!

TGHR News

Our Key to Success = Company Culture

Mary Springer

Partner

March 5, 2018

People before profits. That’s our company motto. Whether we’re placing a temporary employee out in the workforce, catering to one of our clients, or talking to our internal staff, we put people first.

This October That’s Good HR will celebrate 20 years in business and over the years That’s Good HR has never lost focus on what matters most – people. Ten out of our 15 employees have been at That’s Good HR for 5+ years and four team members can celebrate 10+ years with the company.

What’s our secret, you ask? Cultivating a positive company culture. We’ve never bragged about this before, but recently were honored as a Best Places to Work in Indiana. How did we achieve this honor? By creating a supportive, family-friendly environment by providing flexible schedules, including part-time options and work-from-home when needed options. TGHR employees like to come in the office too for employee appreciation lunches, pop-up smoothie bars, chili cook-offs and more.

We are always looking for innovative ways to appreciate our employees. So last year, after reading an insightful article, we introduced a new concept for TGHR – bonus days. Each employee, full and part-time employee alike, receives one bonus day per quarter. This day is designed to be used to do something for yourself like take time to pamper yourself, go shopping or take a long weekend. Bonus days are scattered through the quarter ensuring that not the entire office is off at once.

TGHR does many standard practices for employees, including offering great health benefits available from your first day of work, to having an employee of the quarter, complete with a comically large trophy, and a swinging holiday party celebrated in January with spouses.

Twenty years ago, That’s Good HR was founded out of a desire to do staffing better. This includes treating people better too – our candidates, our clients and our internal employees. Want to work with us and see why we’re one of the Best Places to Work in Indiana? Reach out and our team would be happy to show you.

Tips

Running out of time…in 2017!

Amber Crosby

December 7, 2017

It’s already December (how did that happen?) and the new year is right around the corner. We all need more time in the day and more time before (hopefully) taking some time to enjoy the holidays with friends and family.

So how can you squeeze the most out of 2017? Here’s what we recommend:

Be focused! Scrutinize your to do list – both work and personal – and prioritize what really needs to be done this year. Focus only on the items that must get done right now. At the same time, get a jump on your to-do list for 2018 now.
Go to sleep! No, really. A good night’s sleep makes you more productive during the day. Being productive makes you feel less stressed, being less stressed helps you be more relaxed, which, in turn, affords you a better night’s sleep. It’s a cycle! This is one of Inc.’s 9 Ways to Save More Time. Check it out – but only if you have time!
Be in the moment! How much time do you waste on your phone each day? Too much? Download an app like Moment, which will track your phone time and track what you are using your phone for. There’s even a “coach” that can help you break bad habits and provide suggestions to free up your time.

But the best way to get more time in your day? Call That’s Good HR. It takes an average of 42 days to fill a position, but we provide candidates within 24 hours – 98% faster than average. Save time and let us do the work. We’ll get you staffed up and ready to take on 2018. Call us today so we can give you the gift of time this holiday season.

Seasonal

Take the Chill Off with Chili

Meaghan Smith

November 8, 2017

Recently, TGHR employees participated in our inaugural chili cook-off. The event was a hit, and we sampled five different chilis. Here are the participating recipes. Make them at home, share with your fellow coworkers, and let us know which is your favorite!

First up, is the taste-test winner! This unique chili took home first place and really hit the spot.

Chicken Enchilada Chili
1.5 lbs chicken breast
1 can black beans
1 can chili beans
1 can corn
1 can Rotel
1 can red enchilada sauce
2 cups chicken stock
1.5 tbsp chili powder
3/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1 package cream cheese

In a large crockpot, add the enchilada sauce, Rotel (undrained), chili beans (undrained), black beans (drained and rinsed), corn (drained) and uncooked chicken breasts. Next, add the chicken stock and all the seasonings. Stir well. Cover the crockpot and place on high for 3-5 hours or low for 5-8 hours. Remove the chicken and shred using two forks. Cube the cream cheese and put the cubes in the crockpot. Then, whisk the cream cheese and add the shredded chicken. Cook on high until all the cream cheese is melted. Stir and serve!

Do you want a chili that has a unique flavor to it? This recipe was a definite crowd pleaser, and came in second place!

Bloody Mary Chili
1 lb beef
1 lb Italian sausage
3 cups Mr. & Mrs. T’s Bold and Spicy Bloody Mary mix
2 packets McCormick’s chili mix
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 white onion, diced
Elbow macaroni
Salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder to taste

Brown the beef and Italian sausage with the diced onion. Then, put all the remaining ingredients in crock pot EXCEPT the macaroni. Put the crock pot on low (or high if you are in a rush). Cook the macaroni separately and add them to the chili 1 – 2 hours before serving.

Looking for a chili with a different texture? Try this recipe, which can be made with regular ground beef too!

Organic Chili
1.5 lbs organic ground beef
2 cans hot chili beans
1 can mixed beans
1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
1 can mild Rotel
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
Cooked macaroni
Garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper to taste

Sautee onions and garlic for about two minutes in olive oil. Add the ground beef and cook until browned. Drain fat. Add beans, Rotel and tomatoes. Season to taste with spices. Simmer for 30 minutes and serve over cooked macaroni.

Are you cooking for a crowd? Give this a try! It was also suggested to put this atop your favorite hot dog.

Hot & Spicy
6 lbs of hamburger
1 big white onion
6 habanero peppers (4 cooked into the hamburger, 2 habanero peppers juiced on browned meat)
1 large can of mild chili beans
5 packs of McCormick’s chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Dice the habanero peppers and then add to the meat while browning it. Once the meat is browned, juice two additional habanero peppers over the browned meat. In a stock pot, combine all the other ingredients and add the meat and peppers. Simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can transfer the chili to a crock pot if you are transporting it to share with coworkers/friends.

Pressed for time? Try this simple white chicken chili, no cooking skills needed!

White Chix Chili
3 cans white beans (drain 1.5 cans)
2 cans chicken (drained)
2 teaspoons cumin
A little less than 1 cup onion, diced
2 chicken bouillon cubs
2 cans diced green chilies

Simply put all the ingredients in the crock pot until heated and stir occasionally. That’s it!

TGHR recommended toppings include: sharp cheddar cheese, mild cheddar cheese, cilantro, green onions, limes (especially for the white chicken chili), avocado, bacon bits, sour cream and oyster crackers. We also suggest serving with cornbread and tortilla chips on the side. And then, when you are too full to possibly do any work, call TGHR and we’ll fill your open positions with award-winning candidates. Bon Appetit!

Staffing

Losing Your Best Employees: What the National Quit Rate is Telling Us

Mary Springer

Partner

January 25, 2017

If you’re losing employees right now, you’re not alone. A rebounding economy and increased job opportunities have boosted the confidence of job seekers in many parts of the country. Workers are so confident, in fact, that some are even willing to quit their jobs without having secured their next step in employment. Since 2010, the national quit rate has been steadily climbing. This telling metric in the labor market speaks sobering news to those of us who need to retain our best employees.

So, it’s time to get serious about employee engagement and retention. But where to start? And what do you do if you can’t afford to pour serious resources into raises or other financial incentives? We’ve got you covered. Download our new tip sheet with eight, easy-to-implement ways you can engage and retain your best workers starting today.

Download now–>8 Tips for Retaining Top Talent (despite the quit rate)